In recent years, digital cameras, digital video cameras, and the like have been miniaturized rapidly. In addition to its good appearance, a small image-taking apparatus has advantages in that the apparatus can be carried anywhere without taking up much space, and that images can be easily taken anywhere. Moreover, small high-resolution CCDs and small lenses corresponding to these CCDs have been recently developed, and images with sufficient image quality can be taken even with a small image-taking apparatus.
In the field of single-lens reflex cameras and the like, in a case where dirt is attached to an image-taking lens, or where dust enters the image-taking apparatus, the image-taking apparatus is generally left with a service section of a manufacturer thereof, and is cleaned by a skilled technical personnel. However, because the miniaturization of the image-taking apparatuses has caused more users to carry the image-taking apparatuses, and to take images in daily life, many users dislike leaving their image-taking apparatuses with their respective manufactures. Moreover, the small image-taking apparatuses, which are often carried on a daily basis, are easily soiled. Furthermore, quality of images taken by small image-taking apparatuses are more susceptible to dust and dirt than that of image-taking apparatuses of ordinary size. With such circumstances, development of a technique, which allows lenses and CCDs to be easily cleaned without requiring any special skills, be awaited.
With regard to this point, there is a known technique of vibrating a lens or a CCD with a motor to shake off attached dirt. However, attaching a large motor to vibrate the lens or the CCD causes the size and the weight of the entire image-taking apparatus to be increased considerably. Furthermore, a large battery is required to ensure sufficient electrical power to drive such a vibration driving motor in addition to electrical power to implement an ordinary image-taking function. Accordingly, it is difficult to apply such a technique using vibration to the small image-taking apparatus with small accommodation space.
Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 7-64152 describes a technique for cleaning a lens by attaching a cleaner member to the inside of a lens barrier, and by using the movements respectively of opening and closing of the lens barrier. According to the technique described in Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 7-64152, there is no need to mount an additional motor for vibrating the lens, and the lens can be cleaned while size and power consumption of the image-taking apparatus are reduced.
However, to clean dirt which is firmly attached to the lens, with the technique described in Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 7-64152, the lens barrier needs to be opened and closed many times with a motor. Accordingly, the small image-taking apparatus, on which only a small battery can be mounted, is short of electric power. For this reason, there is a problem that the lens of the apparatus cannot be sufficiently cleaned. With the technique of Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 7-64152, a front lens, which faces the lens barrier, can be cleaned. However, a rear lens and a CCD, which are disposed within the image-taking apparatus, cannot be cleaned. The front lens, which is exposed from the body casing of the image-taking apparatus, can be manually cleaned by a user. Accordingly, it is desired to develop advanced cleaning techniques, specifically, ones that makes it possible to clean the lens and the CCD, which are within the image-taking apparatus, and which cannot be reached by user's hand, with low power consumption.